covediver
Contributor
From Barnes and Noble
"After living more than twenty years in the dreary Pacific Northwest climate, my friend Carol and I headed to the Caymans. This trip proved to be different than any other, as it marked the start of a new phase of my life underwater. With pristine water, beautiful fish, and intricate coral at my fingertips, I officially caught the scuba diving bug. As I reveled in the glorious undersea world and one dive turned into several hundred, I had no idea that my relatively calm life would soon be tossed upside down while on a trip to Kona, Hawaii.
The excursion began so innocently. I spotted an unusual rock during a dive in Kona, stuck it in my pocket, and forgot about it until we returned home. Suddenly, strange events began to occur as I handled my "special rock" and shared it with others. Perplexed, I began researching the rock-not knowing that very soon, Carol and I would be running for our lives, pursued by higher-ups at a large pharmaceutical company who wanted what we had and were willing to do everything in their power to acquire it.
This fast-paced, deep-sea adventure shares the story of an intriguing find from Hawaiian waters and how it changed my life forever."
Review: This story is self characterized as realistic science fiction. The plot is a familiar one, an innocent find turns out to have miraculous healing powers which is wanted at all costs by the exploitive corporation. The story is entertaining as plot unfolds, albeit at a glacial pace for the first several chapter, we learn how the diver found the "special rock" on a trip to Kona, Hawaii. Removed from the island, it could reflect Pele's Curse, which in this case can be "be careful what you ask for; wishes sometimes come true." The underwater aspects of this book are accurate (no reference to oxygen tank) and the author describes the environment accurately. The descriptions of Kona were familiar to me as were some of their dive experiences. In fact, the problem with the book is that the descriptive first person narrative is almost completely devoid of dialog. Action in present in the narrative, but without dialog reading gets tedious. The description of the dives in the book, for example, are accurate and move along, but without dialog or thoughts it becomes passive, like reading a detailed diver's log book.
Bottom line: For the ebook at $3.99, this is a tolerable read and quite entertaining if a bit tedious to read. At $15.00 for the paperback, your money is better spent elsewhere.
"After living more than twenty years in the dreary Pacific Northwest climate, my friend Carol and I headed to the Caymans. This trip proved to be different than any other, as it marked the start of a new phase of my life underwater. With pristine water, beautiful fish, and intricate coral at my fingertips, I officially caught the scuba diving bug. As I reveled in the glorious undersea world and one dive turned into several hundred, I had no idea that my relatively calm life would soon be tossed upside down while on a trip to Kona, Hawaii.
The excursion began so innocently. I spotted an unusual rock during a dive in Kona, stuck it in my pocket, and forgot about it until we returned home. Suddenly, strange events began to occur as I handled my "special rock" and shared it with others. Perplexed, I began researching the rock-not knowing that very soon, Carol and I would be running for our lives, pursued by higher-ups at a large pharmaceutical company who wanted what we had and were willing to do everything in their power to acquire it.
This fast-paced, deep-sea adventure shares the story of an intriguing find from Hawaiian waters and how it changed my life forever."
Review: This story is self characterized as realistic science fiction. The plot is a familiar one, an innocent find turns out to have miraculous healing powers which is wanted at all costs by the exploitive corporation. The story is entertaining as plot unfolds, albeit at a glacial pace for the first several chapter, we learn how the diver found the "special rock" on a trip to Kona, Hawaii. Removed from the island, it could reflect Pele's Curse, which in this case can be "be careful what you ask for; wishes sometimes come true." The underwater aspects of this book are accurate (no reference to oxygen tank) and the author describes the environment accurately. The descriptions of Kona were familiar to me as were some of their dive experiences. In fact, the problem with the book is that the descriptive first person narrative is almost completely devoid of dialog. Action in present in the narrative, but without dialog reading gets tedious. The description of the dives in the book, for example, are accurate and move along, but without dialog or thoughts it becomes passive, like reading a detailed diver's log book.
Bottom line: For the ebook at $3.99, this is a tolerable read and quite entertaining if a bit tedious to read. At $15.00 for the paperback, your money is better spent elsewhere.
